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UPDATED: Orders of the Day: Decision Day! It just may be Decision Day!
- April 27, 2010 8:34 AM |
- By Kady O'Malley
So, according to the very, very latest rumours circulating the precinct -- with the
caveat that, you know, he may just change his mind at the last minute,
as noted
in today's Calgary Herald by the more than occasionally oracular
Don Martin -- the Speaker is widely believed to be mere hours away from
handing down his ruling on those three questions of privilege sparked
by the government's refusal to hand over unredacted versions of the
Afghan detainee-related documents that it has been ordered to produce by
the House. And not a minute too soon, really, for those of us who have
spent the last month or so giving crash courses in arcane parliamentary
procedure to the understandably puzzled citizens who buttonhole us on
the sidewalk, or at restaurants, or while we're trying to do a little
grocery shopping, and demand to know why it's taking so long. We need
closure on this parliamentary crisis!
UPDATE!!!: Looks like it *is* going down today, after Question Period, according to extremely well-placed opp sources!
Of course, even if Peter Milliken does deliver his decision later today -- after QP, most likely, although there's an outside chance he could do it during routine proceedings later this morning -- it seems unlikely that it will bring the matter to a close right then and there, no matter how Solomonic his wisdom. ("... Chop the documents in half? How does that solve the problem?")
I'm not quite as convinced as the aforelinked Don Martin that a ruling in favour of parliamentary supremacy will send the prime minister sauntering towards Rideau Hall with a writ-shaped gleam in his eye, but in any case, I'll be there to liveblog the ruling and the reaction, both inside and outside the House. Not that I suspect there was much doubt in anyone's mind about that, of course. After all, I was the very first reporter on the Hill who called this one as a Really Big Deal from the moment I saw the wording of the opposition day motion that started it all. (Yes, eventually, I may stop being smug about that, but today is not that day.)
In the meantime, you can, of course, get caught up on the story by perusing the PrivilegeWatch archives.
So, what else is happening on the Hill? Well, over at Procedure and House Affairs, they're revisiting the Great Prorogation Crisis with a briefing from House Law Clerk Rob Walsh, as well as former House officer Thomas Hall, which is where I'll be heading this morning -- although I may have to skip the last round of questions to make it to Canadian Heritage in time to see if they get around to debating Dean del Mastro's attempt to haul CBC officials before committee to discuss the relationship between EKOS, Frank Graves and the Liberal Party of Canada. (You can read the full text of his motion here.) Since there's already a motion on today's agenda -- courtesy of the Bloc's Carole Lavalee, and, as far as I know, entirely unrelated to the CBC and/or EKOS and the Liberals -- it's not clear if they'll have time to deal with both items during the time set aside for committee business, so it may be pushed off until Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Health committee may be worth tuning in this morning as it launches an investigation into the impact of microwaves and human health with a witness list that seems handcrafted to produce steely glares and hostile silences: the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association -- which will, according to the notice, be represented by its president, former New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord -- and the Collectif SEMO - Save Our Children From Microwave. Also on the docket: Health Canada environmental and radiation health sciences director general Beth Pieterson, Magda Havas and the GSM Association, with the last two expected to take part by tele/videoconference, respectively.
Finally, you know who else is looking down the barrel of a very, very, very busy day? Other than every single working journalist on the Hill, that is, what with all of the above competing for our already mercurial collective attention? Members of the Finance committee, that's who. Check out the witness list for this morning's supersized three hour meeting on the budget implementation bill: 35 senior officials from eleven different departments and agencies! How will they fit in the room, let alone around the table? And that's not all, even -- this afternoon, they go back in session for a briefing on monetary policy by Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney at the very same time that the Speaker may have gotten to the good part of his landmark ruling! How will they ever manage to follow the bouncing loonie?
UPDATE!!!: Looks like it *is* going down today, after Question Period, according to extremely well-placed opp sources!
Of course, even if Peter Milliken does deliver his decision later today -- after QP, most likely, although there's an outside chance he could do it during routine proceedings later this morning -- it seems unlikely that it will bring the matter to a close right then and there, no matter how Solomonic his wisdom. ("... Chop the documents in half? How does that solve the problem?")
I'm not quite as convinced as the aforelinked Don Martin that a ruling in favour of parliamentary supremacy will send the prime minister sauntering towards Rideau Hall with a writ-shaped gleam in his eye, but in any case, I'll be there to liveblog the ruling and the reaction, both inside and outside the House. Not that I suspect there was much doubt in anyone's mind about that, of course. After all, I was the very first reporter on the Hill who called this one as a Really Big Deal from the moment I saw the wording of the opposition day motion that started it all. (Yes, eventually, I may stop being smug about that, but today is not that day.)
In the meantime, you can, of course, get caught up on the story by perusing the PrivilegeWatch archives.
So, what else is happening on the Hill? Well, over at Procedure and House Affairs, they're revisiting the Great Prorogation Crisis with a briefing from House Law Clerk Rob Walsh, as well as former House officer Thomas Hall, which is where I'll be heading this morning -- although I may have to skip the last round of questions to make it to Canadian Heritage in time to see if they get around to debating Dean del Mastro's attempt to haul CBC officials before committee to discuss the relationship between EKOS, Frank Graves and the Liberal Party of Canada. (You can read the full text of his motion here.) Since there's already a motion on today's agenda -- courtesy of the Bloc's Carole Lavalee, and, as far as I know, entirely unrelated to the CBC and/or EKOS and the Liberals -- it's not clear if they'll have time to deal with both items during the time set aside for committee business, so it may be pushed off until Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Health committee may be worth tuning in this morning as it launches an investigation into the impact of microwaves and human health with a witness list that seems handcrafted to produce steely glares and hostile silences: the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association -- which will, according to the notice, be represented by its president, former New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord -- and the Collectif SEMO - Save Our Children From Microwave. Also on the docket: Health Canada environmental and radiation health sciences director general Beth Pieterson, Magda Havas and the GSM Association, with the last two expected to take part by tele/videoconference, respectively.
Finally, you know who else is looking down the barrel of a very, very, very busy day? Other than every single working journalist on the Hill, that is, what with all of the above competing for our already mercurial collective attention? Members of the Finance committee, that's who. Check out the witness list for this morning's supersized three hour meeting on the budget implementation bill: 35 senior officials from eleven different departments and agencies! How will they fit in the room, let alone around the table? And that's not all, even -- this afternoon, they go back in session for a briefing on monetary policy by Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney at the very same time that the Speaker may have gotten to the good part of his landmark ruling! How will they ever manage to follow the bouncing loonie?
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